Chapter 83
Carolyn
BRAN
We all sat down to dinner. The chili and cornbread was the right call. I had drizzled it with a little honey and made a whipped cinnamon butter to spread on it. Cooking was one of my favorite things to do, and sharing it with others made me happy. We all sat around chatting and enjoying each others company.
As I stood to take the bowls to the sink, my phone rang. Most of the people I spoke to were right here in this room, so I instantly felt anxious. It kept ringing and Ashlynn spoke up, “Mom aren’t you going to answer that?” I know I must have looked strange, I felt frozen in place. Ashlynn jumped out of her seat and grabbed the phone, looking at it before answering.
“Who is this?,” she asked, placing the phone on speaker.
“Well hello Ashlynn. So good to hear your voice. I’m not calling you though. I want to speak to Carolyn,” the man on the other end of the line stated.
“Well you can speak to me, so tell me what you want,” Carolyn demanded. By this time Cody was out of his seat, standing next to me, his arm wrapped around my waist.
The laughter on the other end grated on my nerves. I broke out of my frozen state and walked the dishes to the sink. Cody followed me and pulled me into his arms, whispering into my ear that I was safe, he would protect me.
“Looks like a nice family dinner you guys are having. Pity I wasn’t invited. Maybe next time….,” he trailed off.
With that, Dawson and Cody both went on high alert. “Lock the door,” Cody called over his shoulder as he and Dawson ran out the door, shifting in mid air. I turned to Ashlynn and to my surprise, she stood there strong, an angry look on her face.
I know that’s you Uncle Wyatt. Stop doing this! You’re being an asshole for no reason. Leave my mother alone!“, she was yelling at this point. I watched her take a deep breath to calm herself. Then I saw her eyes glaze over for a second. I knew she was mind linking her Uncle Gabe. It would be just a matter of seconds before warriors were all over this place trying to find Wyatt. How did he know we were eating dinner? Was he watching us?
He chuckled on the other end, “You always were smart Ashlynn. Obviously you got that from someone other than your mother. I can’t believe she hadn’t figured this out yet.”
“How do you know she didn’t figure it out? You know nothing,7 Ashlynn bit out. “Now tell me why you are harassing her?”
“Surely you know why. She got my brother killed. Did you think we wouldn’t find out?,” the anger was now coming through the line, his tone harsh.
“Grady deserved it! He abused my mother and me. I told you he was a drunk!,” Ashlynn was not going to let him blame me for what happened. My daughter always had my back.
“She should have come to me then. Or she should have left him. No one forced her to stay,” that was Wyatt’s comeback. “Now she has to pay for the pain she has caused my family. I’m coming for her. Don’t get in my way Ashlynn. I don’t want to hurt you, but I will if I have too,” he ground out.
“You’re insane. How do you even know where we are? How do you know we are having dinner?,” Ashlynn asked him.
“Oh everyone has a weakness dear. And everyone has enemies. It’s not hard to infiltrate a pack with the right resources,” we heard a commotion on the other end and his voice became muffled as if he was covering the phone. “Time to go, been a pleasure Ashlynn.” He hung up.
I was shaking, physically shaking. I had been terrified of Grady. He had done so many horrible things to me over the years and I thought I was getting better with Cody’s help. I thought I was healing. That phone call brought all the trauma back just like that. Ashlynn put the phone down and wrapped me in a hug. “It’s going to be fine Mom. Cody will not let Wyatt hurt you. Neither will Uncle Gabe. There are over a hundred warriors right now, running the territóry to look for any sign of trouble. You have to trust that everyone that matters will know how to keep you safe.
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Chapter 83
I knew she was right, but it didn’t stop me from feeling like the rug had been pulled out from under my feet. It was just earlier today that Jenna and I had solidified the plans for mine and Cody’s mating ceremony. I was so happy until this phone call.
A loud thump on the side window near the dining table, shocked me out of my inner dialogue. Ashlynn ran to the window to investigate. “What the hell?“, she whispered.
“What? What is it?“, I was to afraid to go to the window to look myself. Ashlynn turned to look at me, a look of total disgust on her face.
A
bloody dead rabbit.”
I felt all the blood drain from my face, and then darkness surrounded me. Somewhere I heard Ashlynn’s voice yelling my name, before I felt arms wrap around me and then blackness crossed my vision, and then nothing.
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